The company formerly known as Adelaide Brighton said its statutory net profit after tax for the six months to June 30 was down 15 per cent to $48.1 million, well under consensus estimates of $61 million.

Underlying net profit after tax, which excludes certain one-off restructuring, rationalisation and acquisition costs, was down 1.3 per cent to $54.3 million. Revenue rose eight per cent to $812.4 million.

“We have delivered another period of top line growth, with increasing volumes across the majority of our product lines as strong demand continued in the construction and mining sectors, despite significant disruption to the business as a result of severe weather events on the east coast of Australia,” chief executive Nick Miller said.

Other headwinds during the first half included higher raw material, shipping, transport, power and fuel costs.

As for the outlook for the rest of the year, the company predicted strong demand for cement and stable volumes for lime, but declined to give much in the way of numbers.

“The current economic and operating environment make it difficult to provide quantitative guidance at this time,” Adbri said.

The company declared a full-franked interim dividend of five cents per share, down from 5.5 cps a year ago.

Adbri shares this afternoon were down 18.1 per cent to $2.18, their lowest level since August 2020.

-AAP